A VEVO check is how you confirm which Australian visa you currently hold, the relevant stay or travel dates, and what conditions come with it. VEVO stands for Visa Entitlement Verification Online. It’s run by the Department of Home Affairs, and you can do the check yourself online.
VEVO isn’t only for visa holders. Employers, education providers and other registered organisations can use it to check visa conditions too, provided the visa holder has given them permission. One limit is worth knowing before you start: VEVO only shows a visa that is currently in effect, so it won’t show a visa that has been applied for but hasn’t come into effect yet. If you’re waiting for a decision on a lodged application, our guide to Australian visa processing times covers current processing information across common visa categories.
What is a VEVO Check?
VEVO is the Department of Home Affairs’ online system for checking the details of a person’s current in-effect Australian visa. Visa holders can use it to look up their own visa, and registered organisations can use it to check the conditions of people who have given them permission.
Its most common use is proof. If an employer, a landlord or the government of a country you plan to visit asks about your visa conditions, VEVO lets you send them proof directly. Because it reflects the visa in effect today, it’s also more reliable than an old document when your circumstances have changed.
What Information Does a VEVO Check Show?
According to the Department of Home Affairs, VEVO displays the following details for your active visa:
- which visa you hold
- the expiry date
- the must-not-arrive-after date, where one applies
- the period of stay, which is how long you can stay in Australia
- the conditions attached to the visa, which is what you can and can’t do.
The conditions are often the most useful part. They can include limits on work or study, so checking them is a quick way to confirm what applies to your current visa instead of relying on memory or an older document. What appears depends on the visa you hold and your circumstances.
VEVO isn’t a full record, though. It doesn’t show a complete history of every visa you’ve held, and it can’t show a visa that isn’t in effect.
How to do a VEVO Check Online
You check your own visa details through the Department’s VEVO service on the Home Affairs website. Have your travel document and the reference details linked to your visa ready before you start.
- Open the official service. Go to the VEVO service for visa holders and choose the option to check your own visa details. Use the Department’s service only, because third-party websites offering to check your status for you aren’t the official tool.
- Choose your travel document and enter your details. You’ll select the document you’re identifying yourself with, such as your passport, and enter its details along with a reference number linked to your visa, such as your visa grant number. Enter everything exactly as it appears in your records, because a mistyped number can stop VEVO from finding your record.
- Review the result. Check the visa, expiry date, period of stay and conditions carefully. If you need to show the result to someone else, use the option VEVO gives you to send proof of your conditions (more on that below).
Can I check VEVO with my passport number?
Yes, a passport can be used as your travel document, but a passport number on its own isn’t the whole picture. You’ll also need a reference number linked to your visa, such as the visa grant number shown on your grant notice. The passport details need to match what the Department holds for you, too. If you’ve been issued a new passport, VEVO may not recognise it until the Department has your updated passport details.
Please Note: If you hold an Electronic Travel Authority (subclass 601), the position is different since an ETA cannot be transferred to a new passport. Home Affairs says your existing ETA ceases when you get a new passport, so you need to apply for a new ETA.
VEVO Check vs Visa Grant Letter: What’s the Difference?
Your visa grant letter and a VEVO result do different jobs. The grant letter is the Department’s notice of the visa that was granted at the time, while VEVO shows the visa that’s in effect now, along with its conditions. If you’ve moved from one visa to another since the original grant, the letter alone may not tell you what currently applies.
Neither document replaces the other in every situation. If someone asks you for a particular document, check which one they actually need.
How to Send or Save Your VEVO Result
VEVO lets you send proof of your visa conditions to other people. Home Affairs gives employers, landlords and the governments of countries you intend to visit as examples of who might ask for it. Check the options VEVO gives you on the results screen for sending or saving a copy. That’s usually more useful than forwarding an old grant letter, because it shows what applies now.
It’s sensible to keep a copy for your own records, but treat it as a snapshot of the day you ran the check. If your visa or its conditions change, run a fresh check before you rely on it again. A VEVO result also won’t necessarily stand in for formal visa records in every situation, so if an organisation asks for something specific, ask what they will accept.
VEVO Checks for Employers and Organisations
Employers, education providers and other registered organisations can check a visa holder’s details through VEVO, but they access it differently from an individual. An organisation registers for an ImmiAccount and then uses VEVO to see the visa conditions of people who have given it permission. That permission matters, because it’s the visa holder’s consent that allows an organisation to look up their conditions.
For employers, VEVO is a practical way to confirm whether a worker’s visa allows them to work and whether any conditions limit that work. If you’re thinking about sponsoring someone rather than only checking their visa, our guide on how to sponsor an employee in Australia explains the process, and our employer sponsorship services cover the sponsor side.
What if Your VEVO Details are Wrong or Missing?
If VEVO can’t find your record or shows something that doesn’t look right, the cause can be the details entered or what the Department has on file. Start by checking the numbers and dates you typed against your documents, and make sure you’re using details linked to your current visa. A new passport is one situation to check, as covered above.
Some long-term residents may have no searchable record at all. Home Affairs says that if you migrated to Australia before 1990 and haven’t travelled out of Australia since, you might not have an electronic record of your visa. In that case, you can request an electronic record of your permanent visa through the Department’s proof of permanent residence process, then use VEVO to prove your status. A failed search in that situation doesn’t automatically mean you have no valid visa.
If you still can’t get a result, the Department provides a VEVO enquiry form for certain errors and access problems, although it isn’t a general service for checking visa options or the status of an application.
Why VEVO Might Not Show a Visa You’ve Applied For
VEVO only shows a visa that’s in effect. If you’ve applied for a new visa and it hasn’t come into effect, VEVO won’t show it, even if the application has been lodged. Home Affairs gives the example of someone who holds a bridging visa while their substantive visa hasn’t yet expired.
In practice, a pending application doesn’t replace your current visa in VEVO. Until a new visa is in effect, your result reflects the visa you hold now, and the conditions shown are the ones that apply to it. If you’re on a bridging visa, our guides to Bridging Visa B and Bridging Visa C explain how each works.
Final Thoughts
A VEVO check is a quick way to confirm which visa is in effect, the relevant stay or travel dates, and what conditions apply. It’s a snapshot, though, not a full history of your visas or applications. Run it before decisions that depend on your conditions, such as starting a new job or enrolling in a course, and run it again if your circumstances change.
If what you see doesn’t match what you expected, particularly after a visa change or a new passport, sort out the discrepancy before relying on the result. Knowbal works with Registered Migration Agents, so if you’d like advice on what your conditions mean for your situation, you can contact Knowbal.
FAQs
What if I don’t have a visa grant number or reference number?
VEVO can accept a Transaction Reference Number (TRN), visa grant number or visa evidence number. If you applied online, you may be able to find your TRN in your ImmiAccount. Your visa grant number is usually shown on your visa grant notification. If you still cannot find the reference details for your current visa, the Department of Home Affairs provides a VEVO request process for retrieving them.
Do I need an ImmiAccount to use VEVO?
No. Visa holders can access VEVO directly without logging in to ImmiAccount. You will need details from your travel document, such as your passport, together with an accepted reference number linked to your current visa. ImmiAccount can still be useful if you need to find a Transaction Reference Number or check information about a visa application.
Does a VEVO check cost anything?
No. You can check your own visa details through the Department of Home Affairs VEVO service for free. There is generally no reason to pay a third-party website simply to run a standard VEVO check for you.
What does “must not arrive after” mean on a VEVO check?
The “must not arrive after” date relates to when you can enter Australia using that visa. It is not always the same thing as how long you are allowed to remain in Australia after entering. For permanent residents, the date can relate to the end of the visa’s travel facility. If the travel facility has expired while you are outside Australia, you may need a Resident Return Visa before returning as a permanent resident.
Can VEVO confirm that I’m an Australian citizen?
No. VEVO is used to check visa details and conditions and cannot be used as proof of Australian citizenship. Australian citizens can generally use an Australian passport or citizenship certificate as evidence of citizenship.
